6 Ways to Deal With Boredom in Addiction Recovery

Depending on the severity of the symptoms, your doctor may even recommend medication to help treat depression and anxiety. It’s not as simple as “getting out there” and “trying something new.” It’s hard to do that when you suffer from extreme depression and anhedonia. The very things you should be doing to feel better require a level of motivation you might not be able to fathom.

Unfortunately, because of the nature of alcohol, using it to ‘fill time’ leaves you feeling depleted. Using your free time to rediscover old hobbies or start new ones is a great way to keep your mind drinking out of boredom off drinking. Additionally, healthy hobbies leave you feeling relaxed and fulfilled, building resilience. Once the fun and novelty of being in recovery wears off, you can be left feeling bored.

Why Is Social Connection Important for Addiction Recovery?

Sobriety is possible and, with the right resources, very achievable. Remember that recovery can be uncomfortable and that it’s important to https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/5-alcoholic-types-in-alcoholism/ have patience and compassion for yourself through this time. For many, drinking can be a social activity or used to stave off boredom.

This will not only help keep you from being bored now, but also in the future as you plan fun things to do like a trip. If you give up after a couple of minutes of feeling disinterested, you’ll never get into it. Sometimes you just have to persist until you overcome that initial resistance. Try picking something you want to do and sticking with it for a certain length of time no matter what. If you’re still not into it after 10 or 15 minutes, try something else. Many activities, especially complex and productive activities, take a certain amount of effort and focus for them to be engaging.

Six Persistent Myths About Addiction

I have gone to bars with people I genuinely like as a sober person, and I don’t stay for longer than an hour or two if nothing is happening. When you remove alcohol from your life, you free up all the time you spent drinking and recovering from drinking. If you ever sit down to do that math, you will shock yourself with how much time went towards drinking. Now that you know the chemical reason for your boredom, let’s explore additional factors that might be contributing to these feelings.

But I still remember the agonizing boredom of early sobriety. When I suddenly had so much more time and no clue what to do with it. In those early days, the whole experience of not drinking sometimes felt like an unbelievable drag.

Take care of your underlying health issues.

But I’m going to explore solutions for people who sit at various points along the “sobriety is so boring” spectrum. I realized that sobriety was not fundamentally boring. Alcohol merely blurred my perception of social situations. It’s hard to fill that time, especially when dealing with alcohol cravings and triggers.

• According to the 2021 data from SAMHSA, 29.5 million people aged 12 or older were diagnosed with an alcohol use disorder, which is expected to grow.
• However, if you’re frequently bored, you may not have enough to do.
• Drinking alone can become problematic when a person has a habit of doing it.
• I spent time looking out for sober role models in my social and professional circles – men of a similar age who were sober but still funny, smart, confident and capable.
• Sharing with friends and family allows them to support and encourage you on your journey.

You’re less likely to binge drink if the alcohol isn’t within your reach. But here I am, one year sober, and I actually booked a trip I have been planning for a decade. In April, my husband and I will spend our anniversary hiking in Havasu Falls. The permits for this hike are the main source of income for the Havasupai tribe and are only released once a year.